Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Politics : Sioux Nation -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: SiouxPal who wrote (185722)	1/27/2010 10:38:00 AM
From: Rock_nj	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 361973

Obama to Give 13 Areas $8 Billion for High-Speed Rail (Update2) January 27, 2010, 10:25 AM EST By Angela Greiling Keane Jan. 27 (Bloomberg) -- President Barack Obama will give $8 billion in economic stimulus money to 13 U.S. rail corridors tomorrow, mostly for high-speed passenger service, an administration official said. Obama will announce the funds, the biggest single U.S. investment in high-speed rail, in Tampa, Florida, according to the official, who declined to be identified in advance of the announcement. The money will benefit 31 states, including a small portion of the $8 billion that will go to improvements of existing rail lines, the official said. Florida, California and New York are among states that applied for money. Vice President Joseph Biden, who commuted by Amtrak between Delaware and Washington when he was a senator, will travel with Obama for the announcement at a town hall-style meeting, the official said. The spending “will yield significant benefits to the states and regions that receive the funds in the short-term, including job creation, particularly in the construction sector,” said Peter Gertler, high-speed rail services chairman for engineering firm HNTB Corp. States receiving funds will “implement track improvements, grade separation, signal improvements and other tasks that need to be completed to deliver a high-speed rail system,” he said. The Kansas City, Missouri-based company worked for Florida and at least five other states in writing their rail grant applications. The Federal Railroad Administration said it received 45 applications requesting $50 billion in aid and delayed the awards from last year to handle a greater number of requests than expected. Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor In addition to Florida, leading contenders for funds include Illinois, California and Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor, which runs between Boston, New York and Washington, said Clint Currie, an analyst for Concept Capital’s Washington Research Group. Companies that manufacture train and rail components may benefit from the spending. General Electric Co. and Siemens AG are among 32 companies that pledged last year to establish U.S. rail-manufacturing operations or expand their domestic workforce if they get some of the rail funding, which states will allocate after they receive it. Central Japan Railway Co., which owns that country’s largest maker of high-speed bullet trains, and Hitachi Ltd. are among Japanese companies that have begun targeting export sales, including to the U.S. Improving lines already in place is an effective use of the funds, said Ross Capon of the National Association of Railroad Passengers. Incremental Improvements “We have always strongly supported incremental improvements to existing services, so giving the money 13 corridors on its face seems reasonable, and consistent with our position,” said Capon, whose group is based in Washington. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood jolted Florida’s effort to win U.S. funds for a Tampa-Orlando-Miami high-speed rail line in October, faulting state lawmakers in a speech for failing to provide money for a proposed Orlando-area link and an existing South Florida commuter rail system that was running short of funds when they passed the state’s 2010 budget in May. “You’ve got to get your act together,” LaHood told the Orlando Sentinel, referring to the state Senate, which hadn’t included rail funds in its version of the budget. “If they don’t,” the paper quoted LaHood as saying, “there’s going to be a lot of disappointed people.” Special Session The comments prompted Florida Governor Charlie Crist, a Republican, and legislators to call a special session in December that authorized $432 million to buy 61 miles (98 kilometers) of freight-rail track owned by CSX Corp. for the Orlando-area line, called SunRail. It also provided the TriRail commuter system from West Palm Beach to Miami with $15 million annually and created the Florida Statewide Rail Commission and Florida Rail Enterprise to advise and oversee new passenger rail systems. Two days after the legislation passed on Dec. 8, Crist wrote LaHood urging him to approve Florida’s application for federal rail funds. --------------------------- Rock_nj: Obama is good for trains! :-)